I am currently running version 2.4.3.20 and having issues with the cooler control on my QSI. Usually after about five subs the cooler function stops working during image download and the sequence aborts. I contacted QSI and they explained that the problem resides within the capture software. He basically stated that if any commands are issued to the camera during image download the camera will halt communications with the software. Not sure if this is what is happening but something has gone south. Also, when I first start cool down the power jumps to 432% before dropping back down to the normal range. I plan to go back to an older version possibly to 2.4.3.12 tonight to test if it is something in the beta versions of the software. I have attached a link to one of my logs showing the failure.
Not sure I agree with this. I personally use the same exact camera you are using I have never had a problem with this. Furthermore, the 683 ws(g) is a very popular camera that many SGPro users use to image without issue.
I doubt this will change anything. The errors in your log are not specific to the cooler… they are indicative of what looks like a total loss of connectivity with the camera. Cannot get the TEC power, TEC temp, filter wheel pos, etc…
Not sure what to do at this point. I like you have never had a problem with the QSI and SGP. I upgraded to 2.4.3.20 and started to have this issue…maybe just coincidence. I am currently imaging and will monitor throughout the night.
Me either… but, I will say that I have seen more than one post where things suddenly start failing (at random intervals) as the temperature cools and winter approaches (assuming you are in the northern hemisphere… maybe not). Sometimes USB cables go bad or the sockets they plug-in to start acting odd as they get cold. USB hubs suffer from the same issues. I remember at one point, my QSI power supply would sometimes cause the camera to lose power for just a split (milli) second when the mount was at a certain RA.
USB cables tend to get me. And power supplies. I don’t think it’s SGP.
Chris
Through process of elimination I believe the problem resides with my powered USB hub. I’ve only had it for a month or so but it appears it has an issue with the QSI when the temperature drops down into the forties. I will run tonight with the camera connected straight to the PC bypassing the hub which I believe will resolve the problem.
Through process of elimination I believe the problem resides with my powered USB hub. I’ve only had it for a month or so but it appears it has an issue with the QSI when the temperature drops down into the forties.
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For what it’s worth, I’ve had a similar problem, and I. too, have traced it to the USB hub, (and, in my case, the extender cable, also), and the solution for me has been a set of relatively inexpensive reptile aquarium heaters and some old towels wrapped around things to keep them warm as the temperature drops. On one occasion I even used bottles filled with hot water to keep things warm, and that solved my issues with disconnects.
I’m told that there are USB hubs that will work in colder weather, but most inexpensive hubs use cheap oscillators that are unstable as temperatures drop, and that’s what causes the issue… thus keeping them warm is one solution.
Karl
Karl…thanks for the info. I bypassed the hub last night and no issues (6 hour session). Plugged into the hub at the end of the night and within 30 minutes started to have issues. Funny thing is that it only impacts the QSI. My mount, guide camera, rotator, focuser and Flatman all go through the hub as well but the connection never fails on those devices.Anyway problem solved…I will just plug my QSI straight into the PC for now as I have plenty of unused ports.
Scott
Yes, Scott, there’s something terribly familiar about this tune… I was convinced that the issue was my SBIG camera, because everything else was still working fine. But the guy I talked to at SBIG convinced me to look at the hub, and, based solely on the empirical evidence, I’ve been forced to conclude he was correct. My working theory is that the CCD cameras are just the most finicky devices on the chain. (I can almost make that make sense… they are moving the most data, they are not mass-market consumer devices, they are designed by [anal-retentive] engineers who don’t put in tolerances for other bits of gear not performing up to published specifications…)
The cheap way to test is just to set the hub out wrapped in an old towel with a sturdy, non-leaking bottle filled with hot water, on a cold night, and see if your camera has issues. I’ve tried that myself, on a cold evening when the camera started throwing errors, once I got things heated up again, the errors went away. Of course, your mileage may vary…
Karl
If your computer will support it, try a USB 3.0 hub. I used to have various guide camera and filter change errors that have not happened since I switched to a USB 3.0 hub. The theoretical speed of 2.0 is 60 mbytes/sec while 3.0 is 640 mbytes/sec. So 3.0 can aggregate several 2.0 devices at full speed.
My Hub is USB 3.0 but the problem is associated with temperature. I took Karl’s advice and used a towel and a hot water bottle and had no issues. I then removed the towel and bottle and let the hub cool to ambient (~42 degrees) and the problem came back.